Paul p



(No Model.)

P. P. WEINHOLT. COMBINED SKIRT LIFTER AND BUSTLE.

No. 486,748. Patented Sept. 16, 1890.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

PAUL P. VVEINHOLT, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOR TO GEORGE H.

ENGELMAN, OF SAME PLACE.

COMBINED SKIRT-LIFTER AND BUSTLE.

SPECTFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 436,748, datedSeptember 16, 1890.

Application filed May 10, 1890. Serial No. 351,302. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, PAUL P. WEINHoL'r, of the city of St. Louis, in theState of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement inCombined Spring Skirt-Lifter and Bustle, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact description, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to a combined skirtlifter and bustle that has aspring adj ustment by which it is made transformable from its collapsedposition into a medium skirtlifter or bustle, and from that positionintoa higher lift, in which it is adapted for use in passing over muddycrossings or wet grass, &c.; and the invention consists in features ofnovelty hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

Figure I is a perspective view of the combination frame in its collapsedcondition, and shows a detail of the strap that is secured around thewaist of the wearer to attach the frame in its operative position. Fig.11 is a perspective View of said combination frame, sprung up into itsextreme elevated position; and Fig. III is a like view with the frame inits medium position, in which it provides a medium skirt-lift or bustle.

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents the center back-strap plate ofthe frame, which remains stationary in a vertical position, and which ispreferably made of steel plate, but may be of any other suitablematerial, and 2 is the approximately circular stationary wire, which isrigidly secured to said back-plate 1, respectively at top and bottom, bythe loops 3 at the ends of said plate, which loops bend around andrigidly hold said circle wire at their points of contact.

4 represents an elongated rectangular wire frame, which spans from sideto side of the circle frame 2, to which it is secured, by soldering orotherwise, at 5, and the upperstretch 6 of which may be secured to theback-strap plate, where it crosses, by a solder or other joint 7. Theends of said rectangular frame preferably project beyond said clrcleframe sufficiently for the outer hinged attachment of the double-loopportion of the elevator frame 8, which is preferably made of steel wire,but may be of any other suitable material. The said double loop ispreferably made of a single wire, and is constituted of a minor loop 9and major loop 10, the wire at the connection between said loops turningaround the wire of the lower stretch of the rectangular frame at at ornear its outer corners, outside the circle frame, making ahingeconnection 11 of said double-loop part of the elevator-frame 8.

12 represents a double-bow-guide frame, which is preferably made of asingle piece of steel wire, but may be of any other suitable material.The top center of said double-bow frame is rigidly secured to the frontof the back-strap plate 1 by a strap-bracket or other suitableattachment joint 13. The wire at both sides of said attachment divergesat an angle 14:, inclining upward and forward to hold the integralparallel bow-wires 15 at a sufficient elevation to provide the upper endof the guideway 16 between said parallel bow-wires. From the forwardpoints of the angles 14 the parallel bow-wires extend round in the arcof a circle until they reach to a little above the foot-loop 3 of theback-strap plate, where the lower toe ends 17 are inturned toward eachother, and are secured to the back-strap steel plate by the extension ofthe upturned end of the lower loop 3, which extension also curves aroundand makes a hingeseat 18 for the pivotal end 19 of the bifurcated wirehook 20, whose parallel arms 21 extend from said pivot end to the T-head22 that carries the inturned hooks 23, which hooks, when operative, asshown in. Figs. II and III, embrace the parallel bow-wires 15 to limitthe drop of the elevator-frame by means hereinafter explained, when itis held in its medium position.

24: represents a double angularly-bent metal strap-plate which ispreferably made of steel and is formed with a circular foot terminal 25,from which for a short distance both layers of said strap-plate run inclose contact at 26 until they reach the lower stretch 27 of therectangular frame 4, (previously described,) at which point both layersdiverge, each passing around opposite sides of said wire 27 of ablysecured together by the rivets 30, which pass through and are riveted tosaid double layers of the plate. The lower portion of said strap-platefrom the last-mentioned point of double-layer contact runs preferably ina straight course 31 to the extreme center of the major loop 10 of theelevator-frame,around which it passes and is rigidly secured by a clampembrace 32 of the same. From this point said strap-plate diverges at anangle,

so as to take a straight course 33 to the extremecenter of the minorloop 9 of the elevator-frame, around which it angles at 34, an dconverges in a straight course 35, until it reaches the before-mentionedjunction doublelayer contact of said strap-plate at 29. In passing tosaid double-layer junction, as well as in passing from the same, the twoportions 31 and 35 of the said angularly-turned strapplate 24 passthrough between the parallel bow-guide wires 15, which, as the lifter iseither elevating or depressing, guides the angular strap-plate 24 fromlateral digression in its movement.

36 represents a detail of the attachment strap by which the combinationdevice is secured to the waist of the wearer.

In operating the device, if it is desired for the time being to use itin its nearly collapsed condition, as shown in Fig. I, (the previouscondition supposably being in its elevated position shown in Fig. II,)the bowguide wires 15 are sufficiently pressed together to dislodge thebifurcated hook 20, when its parallel arms. 21 are folded back, turningon their pivotal end 19 until they lie snugly against the strap-plate 1at the same time that the minor and major loops 9 and 10 oftheelevator-frame are swung down from the position shown in Fig. II to thatshown in Fig. I. Now it will be seen that when in the elevated positionshown in Fig. II, the circular foot-terminal 25 of the angularly-bentstrap-plate (that governs the elevator-frame) rests as a lock-braceagainst the steel backplate 1, and thus holds the loops 9 and 10 of thelifter in their elevated position, as thus and there shown. Then thebifurcated hook 20 having been detached from the parallel bow-wires 15,a slight downward pressure is. administered on the elevator-loops, whichcauses the angularly-bent strap-plate 14, that governs said elevator, toturn on its journal-bearings 28 on the lower stretch 27 of therectangular spring wire frame 4, and pressing said spring journal-wire27 and said spring strap-plate 1 sufficientl y divergent apart to allowthe circlefoot 25 of the strap-plate 24 to pass its center hearing, whensaid elevator-frame is immediately sprung down into its approximatelycollapsed position, as shown in Fig. I, in which the'said circle-foot 25looks it in that position also. In this adjustment of the device it onlyslightly puffs the skirt to add to the elegance of its pendent curvedlines.

When it. is desired to use the device as a combined skirt-elevator andbustle, the elevator-frame is again lifted (the foot 25 sliding on thespring strap-plate 1 past its center bearing) and the bifurcated hook 20is turned outward and made to embrace the parallel bow-wires 15, afterwhich the elevator-frame is dropped into the medium position shown inFig. III, when the governing strap-plate 24 rests on the T-head 22 ofthe bifurcated hook 20, in which position its circular foot again looksit, and, lastly, to spring it back again into its extreme elevatedposition, (shown in Fig. 11,) the frame is again lifted until thecircle-foot 25 of the strap-plate 24 passes its center bearing, when ofits own accord the elevator springs up to its most elevated position asa skirt-lifter.

The custom of wearing dress-skirts with short trains, or a nearlyapproximate approach thereto, in the house enforces the necessity of askirt-lifter, which, like the subject of the present application, can beadj ustably depressed or elevated, and the latter to different degreesof elevation to accord with its use either indoor or out and in fine orwet weather.

I have shown and described two loops 9 and 10 to the elevator-frame,which is the num ber generally preferred, but I do not confine myself tothat number, for the elevator may be constructed with a single loop, orit may have a multiple of any number of loops required.

I claim as my invention 1. The combination of the center backstrap plate1, the stationary approximately circular wire 2, secured to the ends ofthe plate, the elongated rectangular wire frame 4, having its endsprojecting beyond the wire,

secured to the latter and to the plate by its.

upper stretch, and the elevator-frame 8,having loops 9 10 and hinged tothe wire frame and the double angularly-bent strap-plate 24,

strap-plate 24, and the parallel bow-guide wires 15, secured to saidstrap-plate 1, which bowwires guide said elevator loop-frame fromlateral displacement, the said loop-frame being arranged to be sprungfrom the position of a bustle into that of a skirt-lifter and backagaimvice versa, by the pressure of the hand of the wearer,substantially as and for the pur pose set forth.

3. In a combined skirtlifter andbustle, the

combination of the stationary approximate circle-wire, the vertical backspring strapplate, the said vertical strap secured by loops 3 to saidcircle-wire, the rectangular wire frame 4, the said frame secured nearits ends to the circle-wire and the upper stretch 6 of said framesecured to the vertical strap 1, the parallel bow-Wires 15, secured tosaid strap 1, the double angularly-bent strap-plate 24, provided withthe journal-bearing 28, in which the lower stretch journal-Wire of saidrectangular frame has its bearings, the projected footterminal 25 of thestrap 24 at the inner end of said double strap, and the minor and majorloops 9 and 10 of the adjustable self-locking elevator-frame, the saidelevator-loops being inclosed Within said double strap" 24, and providedwith the hinge-connection 11 to said angle-frame, substantially as andfor the purpose set forth.

4. In a combined skirt-lifter and bustle, the combination of thestationary frame, the pivotally-adj ustable and self-lockingelevatorframe 8, the parallel bow-guide Wires 15, that proj ect from andare secured to said stationary frame, and the bifurcated hook 20,provided with parallel arms 21, which have journal bearings 18, securedto said stationary frame, and at its outer end provided with the T-head22 and hooks 23, Which hooks are made to embrace When operative theparallel guide-Wires 15, and the T-head arranged as a buffer-stay to theelevator-frame at its medium lift or drop, substantially as and for thepurpose set forth.

PAUL P. WVEINHOLT.

In presence of BENJN. A. KNIGHT, SAML. KNIGHT.

